AXA Switzerland has been actively engaged in the areas of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) and Health Management for a long time. Experts have explored the topics, initiatives have been launched, and roadmaps created – yet a comprehensive strategy to connect all these disparate measures and provides long-term guidance was still missing.
“When I started at AXA two years ago, I realised that although there were roadmaps, there was no long-term DE&I strategy based on a sound analysis of the current situation,” explains Patrick Weber, Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at AXA Switzerland. “However, a strategy is essential for my work in order to raise the visibility of these topics and to promote collaboration and alignment across different interrelated areas within the organization.
At the same time, Health Management also recognised the lack of a strategic foundation. Since both these areas – although previously treated separately – were in fact closely related in content, the decision was an easy one: A strategy was needed that would not consider each area in isolation, but integrate them within a single shared framework.
As day-to-day operations left little room to push this forward internally, AXA Switzerland decided to launch a structured strategy process in collaboration with the Competence Centre for Diversity, Disability and Inclusion (CCDI) at the University of St. Gallen.
“We deliberately chose to collaborate with an external organization – not only for resource reasons, but also to make scientifically grounded decisions and to allocate resources in a targeted manner,” says Patrick Weber.
The collaboration with the CCDI placed particular emphasis on the following aspects:
“We wanted a data-based and scientifically grounded strategy that is broadly supported across the company and provides a shared, impactful framework for Health and DE&I, enabling us to harness synergies effectively.”
From the outset, it was clear to AXA Switzerland that strategy development should not take place “behind closed doors”. Instead, the development process would be transparent and inclusive of different perspectives within the organization.
A broad inclusion of internal stakeholders was therefore pursued:
A crucial success factor was the strong commitment of the executive board. “You can develop the best strategy, but if senior management doesn’t support it, implementation will be difficult,” emphasises Patrick Weber.
The outcome: the strategy was not a project driven by individuals, but a collective product of many departments – and as a result, enjoys broad acceptance.
The developed strategy is more than just a concept “on paper”. It has become a guiding framework for future measures.
The strategy development also had positive effects on those responsible for DE&I and Health Management:
With its new strategy, AXA Switzerland has demonstrated that DE&I and Health Management are closely interlinked: both areas influence and strengthen each other.
The success of the project lies not only in the strategy itself, but in its consistent development and implementation – from a robust analysis to a participatory development process and its long-term integration into corporate culture.